New Levels of Performance
for HDR Displays

DisplayHDR Specs

High Dynamic Range (HDR) displays deliver better contrast and color accuracy, as well as more vibrant colors, compared to Standard Dynamic Range (SDR) displays. As a result, HDR is gaining interest for a wide range of applications, including movie viewing, gaming, and creation of photo and video content. HDR logos and brands abound, but until now, there has been no open standard with a fully transparent testing methodology. Since HDR performance details are typically not provided, consumers are unable to obtain meaningful performance information.

Creating an open specification for the PC industry shared publicly and transparently

Developing an automated testing tool that end users can download to perform their own testing if desired. You can download DisplayHDR Test Tool for HDR display performance verification aimed at professional users here.

Delivering a robust set of test metrics for HDR that clearly articulates the performance level of the device being purchased

The first release of the DisplayHDR specification, DisplayHDR version 1.0, was introduced in December 2017 and is geared toward liquid crystal displays (LCDs). In January 2019, VESA followed this up with the release of the DisplayHDR True Black standard, a variant on DisplayHDR, which is optimized for emissive display technologies – including organic light emitting diode (OLED) and future microLED displays. DisplayHDR True Black allows for significantly deeper black levels in addition to greater dynamic range and improved rise time – enabling a visually stunning experience for home theater and gaming enthusiasts in subdued lighting environments.

Member Participants

More than two dozen active member companies contributed to the development of DisplayHDR, including:

DisplayHDR Performance Levels

The DisplayHDR specification for LCDs establishes four distinct levels of HDR system performance to facilitate adoption of HDR throughout the PC market: DisplayHDR 400, DisplayHDR 500, DisplayHDR 600, and DisplayHDR 1000. The DisplayHDR True Black specification for OLED and other emissive displays includes two levels of HDR system performance: DisplayHDR True Black 400 and DisplayHDR True Black 500. Additional tiers are expected to be added later for both standards to support continuous innovations and improvements in display performance. All tiers require support of the industry standard HDR10 format.

First genuine entry point for HDR.

Significant step up from SDR baseline:

True 8-bit image quality – on par with top 15% of PC displays today

Global dimming – improves dynamic contrast ratio

Peak luminance of 400 cd/m2 – up to 50% higher than typical SDR

Minimum requirements for color gamut and contrast exceed SDR

HDR with local dimming, for thinner, lower-cost, lower-power laptops and monitors.

True local dimming and high-contrast HDR at the lowest price point and thermal impact:

About VESA

VESA is an international nonprofit corporation led by a board of directors, which represents a voting membership of more than 280 corporate members worldwide. VESA’s mission is to develop, promote, and support an ecosystem of vendors and certified, interoperable products for the electronics industry.